Having united several clans, Yesugei the Brave numbered about 40 thousand yurts (tents). His wife, the beautiful Hoelun, gave birth to Temujin. According to legend, a newborn child would clutch a spear-shaped blood clot in his palm, predicting the fate of a great warrior. When Temujin was 9 years old, enemies poisoned his father, and then a close relatives robbed the boy, leaving his family with one leaky yurt and an old nag. As the head of the family, Temujin realized that childhood was over and it was time to act.